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For Praise the Lord 
1 hour ago
Johannesburg – Eskom’s board has denied allegations of abuse of power and procurement irregularities directed against the power company’s executive management, including CEO André de Ruyter.
The board described the allegations, which have been flooding the media and public since last week, as aimed at influencing internal operating and governance processes by exerting pressure from outside structures.
This came after the Standing Committee on Public Accounts resolved on Wednesday to investigate allegations made against De Ruyter by suspended procurement director Solly Tshitangano.
MPs canceled their hearing on Eskom’s 2019-20 annual report, with deviations and expansion of contracts made with the National Treasury at the center of the investigation.
Yesterday, spokesman Sikhonathi Mantshantsha said the entity was prepared to make a presentation to Scopa, but suspended the proceedings to consider the accusations made by Tshitangano.
“Eskom remains ready and available to report to Parliament as required by law,” he said.
Mantshantsha said the allegations and attacks on management have the potential effect of distracting management from the critical role of restoring Eskom’s operational efficiency and financial stability.
“This is unfortunate as Eskom is a critical and strategic asset of South Africa, on which the fortunes of the entire country and the economy depend,” he said.
Mantshantsha also said the board was confident that management was executing its mandate to restructure the business, reduce the risk of loss of cargo and drive greater efficiency through cost savings, including new and existing procurement contracts.
“The board will continue to support and guide management in these efforts,” he said.
Mantshantsha also said that the board had affirmed its support and confidence in executive management to instill a culture of high performance, including applying proper consequence management in accordance with Eskom’s internal disciplinary processes.
“The board has full faith in the company’s internal processes and governance procedures to provide a fair process and outcome on the suspended director of procurement matter,” he said.
Executive management, Mantshantsha said, remained fully accountable to the board.
“The board is confident that the management team is currently performing its critical tasks to restore operational stability and a sustainable financial position for Eskom.”
This was despite the fact that acquisitions have long been an area of particular concern for Eskom’s board of directors, and the expected savings did not materialize.
“Therefore, the board has encouraged and instructed Eskom’s executive management, including the group’s chief executive, André de Ruyter, to pay particular attention to the procurement function to effect the required change and generate the expected savings.
“Progress in this regard has been slower than the board would have liked to see, at least in part, due to leadership gaps in the procurement function,” Mantshantsha said.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Mine Workers (NUM) said it was very concerned about allegations of racism leveled against De Ruyter, along with other managers, for purging black suppliers.
Tshitangano had alleged that De Ruyter preferred white-owned companies to black-owned companies, among other things.
NUM Acting Secretary General William Mabapa said the allegations were serious.
“The NUM stands firm in its support of the Scopa of Parliament to investigate the allegations against De Ruyter,” Mabapa said.
He called on the Minister of Public Enterprises, Pravin Gordhan, to take action.
“Whenever racism shows its ugly head, it must be dealt with and defeated,” Mabapa said.
He also said that the union took note of reports suggesting that Eskom needed R1 billion a week to survive.
“Eskom’s problems cannot be solved by just injecting money.”
Mabapa said the government should review the evergreen coal contracts and the independent power producer contracts that the entity was milking.
Eskom should, among other things, bring the plus-cost mines back to its books.
“This will allow Eskom to reduce the unnecessary cost of coal,” Mabapa added.
[email protected]Political Bureau
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